By : Alex Nagorski

They meet every two years, usually in some distant country, to determine the best competitive balloonist in the world. The champions and top pilots of each country, which is a member of the FAI Ballooning Commission, assemble for three reasons 1) to determine the champion pilot, 2) to reinforce friendships amongst aeronauts of all nations, and 3) to stimulate the development of aerostation by an international comparison of performance of pilots and aerostats,. On September 28th they met in Bad Waltersdorf, Austria.

It is a unique community that gathers here. Some regular pilots, officials, observers, and crews who greet each other as old friends that they may only see every few years. New pilots bewildered by the famous names, intimidated by previous champions, or thinking "I have never competed in terrain like this. How do I adjust my flying habits?" They sat through the event briefing watching a parade of organisers and experienced competition officials who make the event possible.

It is a serious but friendly community, for it is not only fun in competing for a championship but there is a challenge in flying in another country, terrain and with other very skilled pilots. There is a lot that can be learned just from being there.

A small village located in the Steiermark region of Austria (South east corner) it is set among rolling hills, farms, pretty valleys and hot spring resorts. A beautiful countryside fit for a postcard and filled with friendly people. Balloonists used the community indoor Tennis center as the event headquarters and briefing area which provided all the room required for people, but was tight on parking.

Bad Waltersdorf welcomed the balloonists with a nice opening ceremony and festive party for almost 500 people. Typical Austrian food, drink and music followed by playing popular dance music from each country. When the band played a samba, the Brazilian teams jumped up and started dancing around the tables. It is well known that the Brazilians know how to have a good time and they spark the rest of those attending to try to at least match their enthusiasm if not exceed it.

The central story of the event was the wet weather. Many pilots acknowledged that this was the poorest flying weather they have had for a World Championship for many years. This was the first World Championship in many years that saw so few flights (only 5) and tasks (10). In fact near the end of the event, even the Meteorologist wanted to rename the town from Bad Waltersdorf to Bad Weathersdorf. In spite of the weather there was a competition to be run and a champion to be declared.

The first morning of the competition set the tone for the week as there were light showers and a low ceiling when everyone assembled for the morning briefing. Bad Waltersdorf, was on the edge of a slow moving low pressure area. It was disappointing for everyone who came out to the 5:30 AM briefing that the flight was cancelled but safety is always one of the main factors in setting tasks, especially with almost a 100 competitors.

The weather seemed to break for the afternoon and the Event Director, Hans Huber from Germany, called his first task, a Fly In to Furstenfeld Airport. As will be common during the event, the pilots who get into the air when the launch window opens find the winds as forecast, because here the conditions can change quickly. The edge of the low pressure area which had moved eastward decided to return and moderate rain chased the balloons to the target area. Those few who got up first scored well, while others encountered a wind shift and were caught by rain. Not a happy group of pilots and crews having to pack wet balloons in muddy fields. Task 1 (Fly In) was won by John Petrehn (USA) with a toss of 1.62 m.

Monday was a total washout as it rained steadily but it did give pilots, crews and officials a chance to tour the region or indulge in the pools at the hot spring resorts.

Tuesday morning the low pressure area had moved well to the east but with considerable moisture on the ground and very slow winds fog was a concern. Working closely with the event Meteorologist, Gunther Mahringer, and his usually detail and accurate forecasts, the competition officials kept a close eye on the weather. After two one hour delays the flight was on and the weather turned out great. The Director set a 3 part tasks with targets up in the hills where fog would not be a factor as it was in the valleys. There was considerable steerage, especially as the pilots seemed to back up at the second target. The winners on this flight were: Task 2 (Fly In) – Matti Tähtinen (FIN) with 15.22 m, Task 3 (Judge Declared Goal) - John Petrehn (USA) with a drop of 0.19 m., Task 4 (Fly On) – Guy Cinquin (FRA) with 5.42 m. Patience by the officials and the pilots paid off in getting this flight off when it did not look well early in the morning

Tuesday evening saw more marginal weather but Hans Huber, keeping a close eye on the weather conditions found an opportunity and called a two part task. The plan was to try to get the balloons near the near the muddy main launch site so spectators on the grounds could see some action. Task 5 (Pilot Declared Goal) was taken by a lady, Lindsey Muir (UK) with 0.80 m and Task 6 (Fly In) – Bill Arras (USA) dropping at 4.50m.

One of the best mornings was on Wednesday where the upper winds were reasonably quick and there was lots of steerage as the competitors descended to the lower winds. The measuring teams at the targets saw many of markers descending from within the first few hundred feet but those who were able to navigate lower were rewarded by some good results. Task 7 (Judge Declared Goal) saw Csaba Molnar (HUN) drop at 1.90 m while Task 8 (Judge Declared Goal) was won by Bill Arras (USA) with 2.30 m

After two cancelled flights Thursday evening provided excellent conditions for Task 9 (Fly In) won by Danny Galbraith (AUS) 5.38 m and a subsequent Task 10 (Hesitation Waltz) where Frances Messines (FRA) scored the best with 0.45 m. The Hesitation Waltz had targets near several small villages so when the balloons came in low to throw their markers large crowds of local people, crews, observers and officials managed to cause traffic jams. If you can believe it, a gridlock situation occurred in the Austrian country site. At several intersections officials wound up directing traffic in addition to keeping a watchful eye on the balloons.

With many cancelled flights there was time for many pilots and crews to renew friendships and meet those new to the worlds. Also it provided an opportunity for a number of meetings, one of which was the FAI Ballooning Commission Question and Answer session attended by over 300 interested people and most members of the Bureau and Subcommittee Chairmen. It provided an excellent forum for discussing some of the issues concerning international ballooning and let balloonists talk directly and frankly with those at the highest organizational level of the sport. Another very pleasant surprise was a presentation by Bertrand Piccard on how he got into ballooning and he and Brian Jones planned and succeeded in their around the world flight.

Overall the competition saw pilots reaching for the right upper winds, numerous gravity drops (which many pilots preferred), and everyone constantly looking over their shoulder for changing weather conditions.

As is usual at the World Championships the awards banquet was a grand experience with local entertainment, politicians with their speeches, and great food and drink. A fitting celebration to end a notable the event and an impressive setting for awarding the prizes. The FAI Gold Medal and the Kinsinger Trophy along with a nice Breitling watch were presented by Bertrand Piccard to the new World Champion Bill Arras of the United States. The FAI Silver medal went to Uwe Schneider (Germany) and the Bronze went to Gintaras Surkus (Lithuania). It was also noteworthy that 9 countries were represented in the top 10 finishers.

Rank	Name	Nat	Total
1	Arras, Bill	USA	8617
2	Schneider, Uwe	GER	8551
3	Surkus, Gintaras	LIT	7747
4	Williams, Crispin	UK	7606
5	Petrehn, John	USA	7526
6	Messines, Francois	FRA	7468
7	Parry, Richard David	HK	7142
8	Balkedal, Janne	SWE	7040
9	Crkva, Ladislav	CZ	6859
10	Lladó-Costa, Carles	ESP	6828

The complete results can be found on the FAI ballooning web site at http://www.fai.org/ballooning under the sporting calendar or by following the announcement link to the Austrian World Championship web site.

The Austrians were great hosts in 1999. Due to a one time adjustment in the international ballooning sporting calendar to allow for the World Air Games every 4 years, the next World Championship will hosted in Châtellerault, France in August, 2002.